Minimalism is always something I’ve been interested in. I’m not a big materialistic person and saying that I know how hard it is to stay away from material things in today’s world. Most of the times we misunderstand what minimalist lifestyle is really about and end up before even trying to understand it and then incorporate it in our lives.
Minimalist life is about becoming more with less, connecting with the things that really matter and focus less on material things. It’s not something you can do overnight. It takes determination, time and patience which is something that most of the time we don’t have a lot of. I wanted to share with you some ways that I started my journey towards minimalist lifestyle.
Minimalist life is about becoming more with less, connecting with the things that really matter and focus less on material things. It’s not something you can do overnight. It takes determination, time and patience which is something that most of the time we don’t have a lot of. I wanted to share with you some ways that I started my journey towards minimalist lifestyle.
REGULAR DE-CLUTTER AND CLEAN OUT
I’m sure that most of you do the seasonal de-cluttering and clean out that is actually just putting away the clothes or ornaments you can’t wear/use anymore and pulling out the one for the new season. I did the exact same thing. I realized that this is something I need to change if I want to have a minimalist lifestyle. Now, every few months I will go through my closet and try out the things that I own. It’s really important to try out every piece as you may like it on the hanger but you might actually realize that it’s not looking that good when it’s actually on. Be harsh with yourself. If you haven’t wore or used something for over a year then it means that you won’t use it in the future as well. You don’t need unnecessary things laying around your home and just taking out your space.
Try to set a certain date when you’ll go through each room in your house and empty every drawer, wardrobe, cabinet and box and get rid of the things that you don’t need any more. I think that doing it at the end of every month is a great way to do it. You don’t necessary need to go through every single room in your home each month. For example for August you can choose to go through your kitchen cabinets and get rid of any old food or remained packaging, then next month you can go through your bathroom and get rid of any products you used up and see if there is any product that is expired.
THINK BEFORE YOU BUY
There is no point in constant de-cluttering and clean out if you are going to buy more useless things than you actually get rid of. There is too much stuff in this World as it is and you aren’t helping with buying and then throwing things. Thinking before you buy something will not only save you some money but also you’ll help the planet and nature. Most of the times we don’t even know what things we have in our homes because we don’t take time to actually be mindful about material things. De-cluttering really helps as when you get into the store you’ll know exactly what you have, what you need and you’ll be able to decide for the best option even if you do need to buy something.
I’m all for quality over quantity although I know how hard it can be to stick to that as quality most of the times means more expensive. I personally like to splurge a little bit more money on things that I know I’ll use for a longer period of time. When I look at products of high quality brands I try to wait until they have a discount and then buy it for at least a little bit cheaper. It’s totally okay to treat yourself with something that you wanted for a long time and worked hard for but try to then give to charity or sell the item you already have in exchange. So if you are a shoe lover then buy new pair but decide on which pair you’re going to give in replacement.
UNFOLLOW AND UNSUBBSCRIBE
When it comes to minimalist living I think that it applies to every single aspect of your life. Social media is definitely a big part of our lives and sometimes it can get pretty messy. There is nothing wrong in unsubscribing and unfollowing the people you don’t feel connected to anymore (that doesn’t mean that it’s okay to play the follow-unfollow game). Go through your social media following and see which accounts you don’t want to follow any more. We spend too much time on social media as it is and following accounts that don’t inspire us anymore is just not bringing us any good.
I would also recommend going through your email and unsubscribing from all the newsletters that you probably didn’t even subscribe to at first place and now you get notifications every day. I like to do it on all of my social media every few months as I only want to see quality content and follow people that motivate me to be a better person and work harder. Turn off all the notifications that you don’t want to receive. De-cluttering your social media is going to also help you de-clutter your mind. Obsessing over the followers and likes you get will just make you mind clogged with information’s that aren’t urgent or that important.
DON’T BE SENTIMENTAL
It’s easy to get attached to a material thing as it reminds us of a place, moment or dear memory. If you are a very emotional person that almost every single thing can mean something to you and you end up with house full of things that most of the time you don’t even look at. I used to be like that as well until I realized that even if I get rid of that movie ticket I’ll still remember that night and how much fun I had. There are definitely some things that keep a very important memory behind it and I definitely don’t think that you should get rid of those kinds of things by any means.
Ask yourself is this thing is really so special to you that you would save it from a fire or you can compare it to another dear thing to you and decided which one means more to you. I know that this can be really hard for some of you but it’s really important to do if you don’t want to end up with hundreds of material things that are just sitting in the memory box underneath your bed or on your beautiful furniture. It’s also okay to say no to things, events and people. If you don’t want to do something that you don’t want to or don’t feel comfortable with then don’t do it. This is also a way of getting closer to that minimalist life.
Is minimalism something you are interested in?
Do you live a minimalist lifestyle?
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